


Mecha Attraction

by CherryRoses



Category: Dexter's Laboratory
Genre: Comedy, Fluff, High School, M/M, Robots, Romance, dexdark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-06-08
Updated: 2018-11-04
Packaged: 2019-05-19 15:35:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 6,416
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14876501
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CherryRoses/pseuds/CherryRoses
Summary: A harebrained scheme to woo DeeDee goes awry and Dexter finds himself to be the object of Mandark's affection.--Anticipate a fluffy light fic. With robots.





	1. Chapter 1

Today was an absolute disaster. Even more than usual.

Mandark was currently wreaking havoc on Dexter's laboratory as he chased his so-called 'elusive blonde flower'. Chaos trailed in their wake. In an attempt to slow him down, DeeDee flipped a table over - sending Dexter's latest microbial experiment crashing to the floor in a merry tinkling of glassware. 

Dexter had barely finished his usual, "DeeDee, get out of my laboratory!" before Mandark came bounding up. The tips of his black cape dipped into the solution on the floor. He was carrying a sinister looking device in his hands that looked like a ray gun. 

"Come back, my love!" He called after DeeDee, before taking aim and shooting. 

Luckily for DeeDee, ballet afforded her not just the grace and beauty of movement that Mandark adored - it also made her a _fantastic_ sprinter. She darted out of the ray-gun's path, and the shot deflected harmlessly off the wall. 

"What are you trying to do to my sister?" Dexter grabbed the gun and tried to wrench it from Mandark's grasp. 

"Let go!" Mandark said between gritted teeth as he fought with Dexter over the gun. 

DeeDee poked her head out from the rubble to watch this exchange. She had no idea what that gun did. If it was made by Mandark she knew she definitely needed to avoid it. But she wasn't about to let him hurt Dexter either!

She moved to tackle Mandark from behind, but something underfoot cut into her ballet flat. "Ouch!" She looked in dismay at the ground, which was coated in broken glass of test-tubes and vials. 

"DeeDee, what has hurt you?" Mandark swiveled his head, momentarily distracted by DeeDee's distress. Dexter took the opportunity to wrest the ray gun from his grasp. 

"Ha! Let's see how you like a taste of your own medicine!" Dexter exclaimed in triumph before firing point-blank at Mandark.

A ray of red light hit Mandark in the chest and he stumbled backward from the force of the hit. His cape softened his fall - the synthetic fibers making the broken glassware all but harmless lumps underneath. 

Dexter waited for something to happen. But nothing did. Mandark remained on the floor, but now he was staring back at him with wide, unblinking eyes.

"Err…Mandark?" He said, but Mandark didn't reply. A small smile was creeping on his face, however, and it was starting to freak Dexter out.

"Oh, Dexter," Mandark said in a low tone as he got up from the floor, dusting off his black shorts. He started moving towards Dexter with slow, deliberate steps. "I've been so blind this whole time…"

Instinctively, Dexter stepped backward as Mandark advanced.

"Stay back," he warned, brandishing the gun. He still wasn't sure what it did, but any weapon was better than nothing. 

Mandark paid no heed to the threat and instead quickened his pace. "How could I not see before? You've been here all along…"

"Hold on, Dexter!" DeeDee called from her vantage point. She was tiptoeing around the broken glassware, trying to find the fastest way to her brother. 

Mandark was almost toe-to-toe to him now, and there was something reflected in his hazel eyes that Dexter couldn't quite place.

Dexter fired again. Mandark only gave the slightest flinch to indicate that he'd been hit. If anything, his smile grew even wider.

"What is wrong with this thing?" Dexter asked, more to himself than to Mandark. He glanced down at the device, but found no answers.

"It's a most ingenious invention," Mandark said, his eyes fixed on Dexter. "Though it pales in comparison to anything stemming from your brilliant mind…" 

Dexter's eyes snapped up. It certainly didn't _sound_ like sarcasm, but why else would Mandark say something like that? 

"What does this device…do, exactly?" he asked, still backing away. He felt his back bump up against the wall. 

Mandark's smile looked strange, even dreamy. "You know, you're quite adorable when you're perplexed, Dexter…"

DeeDee and Dexter both paused. DeeDee was just a few feet behind Mandark now, having found safe passage around the glass.

"Um, Dexter, is he okay?" DeeDee asked.

At that moment, Mandark lunged forward, closing the distance between them. 

The gun clattered to the floor as Mandark's lips captured his. Dexter raised his hands to push Mandark away, but that only made Mandark press into him with intensified resolve. Dexter found himself pinned relentlessly between the cool titanium wall and Mandark's warm body. 

The pressure lifted as DeeDee sprang into action, dragging Mandark away from her brother. She pinned his arms behind his back. 

Dexter panted for air, realizing that he hadn't been breathing for the entire duration of the kiss. He coughed and spat, trying to get the taste of Mandark out of his mouth. 

"Let me go!" Mandark was struggling against DeeDee's grip. "I've wasted too much time on you already!"

DeeDee was taken aback by the harsh words, but held firm. "Okay, this is getting _weird_. He's never this mean to me."

Dexter wiped the saliva from his mouth with his sleeve. "Gross." How could a person's lips be so wet? 

Mandark was still trying to wrench away from DeeDee's grip - he was surprisingly strong when he was determined enough. 

"Bring him over to that chair. We can tie him up until I figure out what to do."

"Noo, please, let me be with him!" Mandark wailed as DeeDee dragged him over to the chair by Dexter's desk. Dexter fumbled through his lab coat pockets, finding some zip-ties and making quick work of tying Mandark's wrists behind the back of the chair. 

Mandark strained against the chair, but the zip-ties held fast. "I only want to show you the depths of my love, my sweet tiger lily."

DeeDee giggled, and Dexter shot her a glare. "This isn't funny, DeeDee."

"Okay, okay," She covered her mouth and stifled her laughter. "So what happened?" 

Dexter gingerly picked the gun up from the floor. "It would appear that this device causes its target to become infatuated with whomever is shooting it."

"Huh?" DeeDee said. 

Mandark practically purred. "Precisely right. You always were a fast learner, my love."

Dexter ignored him and continued explaining to DeeDee, "It's a love-ray. He's in love with me since I fired it."

"Oh," She said, nodding with understanding. "So what do we do?"

"It's a simple solution," He said, holding the gun out to her. "Shoot him, he'll fall back in love with you, and we can put all this behind us." 

DeeDee shook her head and stepped away from the gun. "No way! I'm not doing that!" 

"It's the only way to make him normal again!" 

"Nuh-uh," She shook her head emphatically. Then her face brightened. "Why doesn't he shoot you and then you both can be in love?"

"I like that idea," Mandark said, nodding enthusiastically.

"No," Dexter scowled. 

"Yeah but think about it," DeeDee said, gesturing with her hands. "He'll stop trying to destroy your lab, you two geniuses would do cute science-y things together, and I won't have to deal with his craziness anymore. Everybody wins!" She threw her hands up in the air for emphasis. 

"It's _genii_ for the plural," Dexter said. "And we're not doing that." 

"Well, I'm not shooting him," DeeDee said, crossing her arms. "You got yourself into this mess, you can get yourself out."

"You got me into this mess by bringing him here!"

"Yeah but you shot him."

"Twice," Mandark added helpfully. Dexter threw him a withering glance. "Sorry."

Dexter gave an exasperated sigh and laid the ray-gun on his desk. "Fine, if that's how you're going to be, I'll simply have to find a way to reverse the effects." He began to dig through the desk drawers for tools to disassemble the unit.

"My dear marigold," Mandark said, as DeeDee giggled under her breath, "I do not doubt your scientific abilities in the slightest, but I should warn you that it took me quite a few weeks to perfect this device."

"I'm sure anything that you've made can be undone in a matter of minutes," Dexter said with a vitriolic tone. 

Mandark gave a pitiful cry, "Oh my love, you wound me with your hatred! I know I have wronged you in the past and I am so sorry."

"Aww," DeeDee said. 

"Don't pity him," Dexter said as he began to lay out his tools.

DeeDee immediately picked up one of the screwdrivers, twirling it in her hand and tossing it up in the air to catch it again. "I think you should keep him like this, he's a lot nicer this way." 

Dexter snatched the screwdriver from her hand. "Give me that. And get out of my lab, I need to concentrate on making him normal again." He said, pushing her towards the door.

"Are you _suuure_ you want to be left alone with him?" DeeDee said, letting herself be literally pushed out the door. 

"I think I can handle it, DeeDee," Dexter said, though his face heated up at the suggestive tone of her words. 

"Alright, alright!" She stopped at the doorframe, then waved to Mandark. "Take good care of my brother, okay Mannie?" 

"I will!" Mandark said, too eagerly for Dexter's liking. 

"Out!" Dexter gave her a final push and slammed the door. He looked back at his desk, where the currently bound Mandark was giving him a stupid grin. 

The day was turning out to be quite a disastrous one indeed…


	2. Chapter 2

Dexter set to the arduous task of disassembling the love-ray. He had no intention of having Mandark stay in his current state a minute longer than absolutely necessary. Moreover, it was a school night and he did not relish the idea of a besotted Mandark fawning over him while their classmates gawked. High school was already frustrating and awkward enough without gossip about him being gay.

He examined each component with meticulous care before neatly labeling and placing them in a row on his desk. It wasn't often that he had an opportunity to tinker with Mandark's inventions - though he had occasionally taken the liberty of repurposing the remnants of Mandark's robot army for scrap metal. It was refreshing to be able to take apart something he hadn't built himself and uncover the mysteries of something more tangible than scientific or mathematical theorems.

He was so engrossed in his work that he failed to hear the faint, metallic scraping of chair legs against the linoleum tiles as Mandark scooted towards him. 

"I could watch you for days."

Dexter paused in his work, holding a gear between his fingers. He cast a wary glance to his left and found that to his displeasure, Mandark was now only a few inches away. 

"Your eyes are such a gorgeous blue," Mandark said, as he leaned in as close as his binds would allow. Close enough so that Dexter could see his hazel eyes. They were grey, yet bright, and staring at him with an intensity that he'd never seen before in all their years of knowing each other. 

He froze in place, held captive by the keenness of Mandark's gaze.

"Like the sea shimmering on a midsummer day," Mandark continued. 

He had heard enough of Mandark's serenades to DeeDee in the school hallways to recognize the flowery verse. Dexter's fist closed tightly around the gear. It was bad enough that he had to abandon his experiment for the sake of fixing Mandark, but now he had to hear recycled lines from poetry that had been written for his _sister?_

"Can it, Mandark," he said, not covering up the annoyance in his voice, "I'm in no mood. Just sit quietly until I figure out how to reverse the effects of your stupid device." 

"Would you like some assistance?" Mandark offered. 

Dexter rolled his eyes. "Like I could trust you." 

"I wouldn't lie to you," Mandark said. "Not anymore." 

But Dexter was too skeptical to be so easily beguiled. He had developed acute paranoia to Mandark's schemes, and his mistrust was based on years of instinct. 

"And why's that?"

"I love you, Dexter," Mandark shrugged. 

The nonchalance with which he spoke made Dexter flush, though he didn't know if it was out of embarrassment for himself or for Mandark. Aside from DeeDee and his mother, no one had ever actually stated their love to Dexter in such an earnest and straightforward manner.

The fact that his first love confession was from his worst enemy did not sit well with him. Not to mention the fact that Mandark had essentially stolen his first kiss. 

But there wasn't time to think about that now. Dexter glanced back down at the partially deconstructed ray gun, and put the gear down. He had been clutching it so hard that its grooves left a faint imprint on his glove. 

"…How do I reverse it then?" Dexter said, trying to steer the conversation towards less romantic inclinations. 

"I'll tell you," Mandark said, but there was a mischievous grin on his face, "if you give me another kiss." 

Dexter scowled. "Forget it! I'll figure it out on my own!" He went back to work on the device, unscrewing the barrel with frenzied twists. 

Mandark was silent for a few blissful moments. But, as usual, the chatterbox would not be quelled for very long.

"So what were you working on?" Mandark asked, nodding over to the shattered remains of Dexter's experiment. Broken glassware still littered the floor. 

"…A serum," Dexter said. 

"Foooor?" 

"…None of your concern," In truth, Dexter had been working on a way to synthesize a form of human growth hormone. He had been hoping to amplify his growth spurt - at 15, he was still a dismal 5'5" and a good 2 inches shorter than Mandark. 

"Ooo, let me guess," Mandark said, "Recombinant DNA for cloning yourself?" 

"No."

"A new type of algae biofuel to power your mecha?"

"No," Dexter said, though he cataloged that idea for later. It would be awfully nice to find a more sustainable energy source for his robots…

"Is it - oh no," Mandark shifted nervously in his seat and looked down at his shorts, "It isn't a mutating agent is it? Because I'm pretty sure I got some on my skin."

"No, Mandark," Dexter said. "Believe me, I would let you know if it was something so potent."

"Really?" Mandark perked up.

"Don't get the wrong idea here!" Dexter said, waving a pair of forceps at him for emphasis, "if you were turning into a mutant I would obviously need to do something about it. It's basic laboratory safety." 

Mandark smiled. "Riiiight. _Safety._ " 

Dexter didn't like the way Mandark was smirking at that last word. He turned back to his work, though he kept Mandark in the corner of his eye.

Mandark laid his head on the desk, not taking his eyes off of Dexter. He looked rather ridiculous, with his arms were still tied behind the chair and his shoulders hunched at an angle. 

"Deeeexter…" Mandark said after about a minute of silence. 

"What now?"

"What's your favorite flower?" 

"I don't have one."

" _Everyone_ has a favorite flower!" 

"Not me," Dexter grumbled. "Flowers should be used for their pollination and photosynthetic abilities, not for romantic gestures."

"Pragmatic as always," Mandark said. "I rather like that about you too. You know what my favorite flower is?"

"I really don't ca-"

" _Aquilegia formosa,_ " Mandark continued. "Otherwise known as the crimson columbine."

"I'm aware," Dexter said shortly. While botany was not his favorite scientific field, he had memorized scientific names for many flowers in the North American region.

"The red is so vibrant in the spring, just like your hair," Mandark said, giving a wistful sigh. "You know, one day I'd really like to-"

The laboratory door opened with a bang. Startled, Dexter dropped a spring, and the metallic coil bounced on the floor with a light _plink._

Even Mandark tore his gaze away from Dexter, raising his head from the desk to look.

Standing in the doorway was none other than Olga Astromononov, Mandark's little sister. 

She was wearing a short rose-pink dress that reached to her knees, and her hair was tied back in two pigtails with matching pink ribbons. If not for the scowl on her face, Dexter would have thought her to be mildly cute.

"Lala," Mandark said, addressing her by her nickname. "What're you doing here?"

Olga glared at Mandark. "Mom wants you home for dinner. _Now._ "

Mandark gave a wan smile. "I'm a bit tied up at the moment…" he shrugged his shoulders in a gesture to demonstrate his predicament. 

Olga narrowed her eyes at the binds, then turned her attention to Dexter. "Hand him over." 

"Very well." Dexter gave a sigh, knowing it was folly to argue. 

Grasping the scissors, he positioned the blades to straddle the zip tie. "Though I should warn you, your brother's temperament has altered quite a bit since you last saw him, thanks to his latest experiment." 

"I don't care what you freaks are doing down here," Olga said, marching over. "Just don't make him late for dinner. It makes our mom get all pissed off."

As soon as Mandark's binds were cut, he let out a sigh and rubbed his wrists. "Thank you, my dear," he said, turning to Dexter and moving in for another kiss. Dexter shoved him away with a grumble of disgust. 

"See what I mean?" 

Olga yanked Mandark back by the arm, pulling him out of the chair. She was immensely strong, and restrained her brother with one hand. "Eh," she shrugged. "Same idiot, different crush. Come on, _Susan._ "

"Don't call me that in front of him," Mandark whined as Olga dragged him away. 

Before they exited the lab, Mandark called out to Dexter. "I'll see you at school tomorrow, my love!" 

Dexter sighed with relief as the laboratory door slid shut, turning back to his desk where the pieces of the ray gun lay partially disassembled. Finally, without Mandark's presence he might actually be able to concentrate. With any luck, he'd be able to cure Mandark in the morning before school started and avoid any further embarrassment.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry it has taken me this long to post. Life got really crazy. Things are going to settle down by November (I hope).   
> Thank you for all the kudos!

Dexter woke up to the sound of his Computer's alarm with a start, wincing in pain as he rubbed his sore neck. He had fallen asleep at his desk sometime in the late hours of the night, searching for a way to reverse the effects. He cursed to himself when he noticed the time. He was no closer to comprehending the enigmatic inner workings of Mandark's invention. Even worse, he had no idea what Mandark had planned for the school day - but judging from his behavior from last night, probably nothing good.

DeeDee was halfway done with breakfast by the time he came downstairs. His father was walled behind the newspaper as usual, and his mother was washing the morning dishes. 

"Good moooorrrning, Dexter," DeeDee chirped. He grumbled in reply, rubbing the bags under his eyes as he poured his cereal. "You look tired!" 

His mother looked over with concern. "Dexter, what time did you sleep last night?" 

"Nine," Dexter lied between bites. 

"He couldn't sleep because he was thinking about a special someoneeeeee," DeeDee giggled, throwing Dexter a wink.

"I was _not_ -" 

The newspaper rustled, and his father peered at him from above the Sports column. "Got a girl on your mind, son?"

"No," _That_ wasn't a lie, at least. He wolfed down the rest of his cereal, eager to leave before his parents could inquire any further about his romantic life. "I'm going now."

"Wanna ride?" DeeDee asked. She waved her hot-pink carabiner at him, her car keys and keychains jingling merrily. 

"Ugh, no," he said. Why did she always offer to give him a ride when he always said no? 

" _Manners_ , Dexter," his mother said with a scolding tone.

He sighed through gritted teeth. "No, _thank you_ , DeeDee. I'll take the bus."

"Alriiight," DeeDee said. "See you later!"

After a perfunctory good-bye to his father, and an unwanted good-bye kiss from his mother, Dexter set off.

He probably should have taken that ride after all. He looked warily down the row of quiet suburban houses with a devastating realization that he would have to pass by Mandark's house on the way to the bus stop.

Dexter slowed to a halt, looking back towards his house. DeeDee had pulled their father's Ford Fusion out of the driveway and was in the middle of making a sharp turn down the road. It was too late to catch up to her now - Huber Community College was in the complete opposite direction of the high school anyway. 

Steeling his resolve, he set off towards the direction of the bus stop. At least Mandark's house was across the street from Mordecai's. Should anything happen, he could find refuge at his best friend's house while he sorted matters out. 

Douglas Mordecai was waiting in front of his house, playing with his green DS as usual. He was fixated on the screen, shoulders hunched and fingers gripping the controls as though his life depended on it. 

"Hey Dex," Mordecai greeted, not looking up from his screen. "Haaaaaaaang on, trying to get this Ninetales..."

Dexter glanced warily across the street at Mandark's house. Tall, black spires jutted out from behind the home, arching into the sky like ominous spikes lacerating the skies above. His parents didn't care, of course, that Mandark had built a literal laboratory in their backyard. Every time Dexter passed by his house he couldn't help but feel a slight tinge of envy. Dexter would never be able to show his parents the Lab. His mother would probably have a heart attack and make him shut it down immediately, saying nonsense about how he was too young to be playing with dangerous instruments. His father would probably tell him the usual spiel about how "boys his age" should be going out with girls and painting the town red. 

Mordecai was still trying to capture his Pokémon.

"Are you done yet?" Dexter tried to hide the irritation in his voice, but to no avail.

"Sorry, sorry - just lemme throw a Masterball aaaaaaand..." The familiar sound of a failed capture emitted from the speakers. "....awww, dang it." 

"Bummer," Dexter said, though it came out a little sarcastic. "Can we go now?" 

"Yeah, sure," Mordecai fell into lockstep with Dexter, now only half-focused on his DS. "You seem to be in a hurry today."

"It's been a crazy weekend," Dexter said, keeping Mandark's house in the corner of his peripheral vision. His hand drummed nervously against his backpack strap. He should have packed his Dexotransformer, that would definitely have kept Mandark away.

Mordecai gave him a sideways glance, "Man, are you okay? You look on edge." 

"Fine," Dexter said. Now, with Mandark's house behind them, he felt even more paranoid that Mandark was going to pop out and try something. What if he was planning to ambush him on the way to school?

"More Mandark stuff, eh?" 

"You could say that," Dexter said evasively. 

"Did he invade your lab?"

"No." 

"Did he hack your computer and rename all the files to "DextersaDooDooface" again?"

"No."   
That particular stint had taken him hours to undo. He still wasn't entirely sure how the heck Mandark managed to do it. 

"Hmm," Mordecai thought for a moment, "Did you two duke it out in an epic giant robot battle?"

Dexter gave a short laugh. "I wish… I haven't brought the mecha out in _ages._ " 

Monster attacks had lessened significantly since elementary school, around the time he had adopted Monkey. He still wasn't sure why. The last time he had brought out the Ultra Bot was when SoYen Chen had moved to town and he and Mandark had teamed up to take her down. But, as usual, they were so busy arguing that they didn't notice when SoYen turned on her lawn sprinklers, short-circuiting their robots. Both had been unceremoniously ejected - his back still ached from the memory of landing on that soggy lawn.   
Ugh. He still needed to work on that stupid ejection system.

"Dex?" Mordecai waved a hand in front of his face, bringing him out of his reverie. 

He blinked. "Sorry. Just thinking."

Mordecai quirked a brow. For a second Dexter thought he was going to keep asking questions, but instead he just turned back to his DS. He was reloading his last save in an attempt to get Ninetales again.

"Say, Mordecai," Dexter said hesitantly, "Did anything...strange...happen at Mandark's yesterday?"

Mordecai chewed his cheek for a second, thinking. "Well, he did take the lambo out for a spin. The engines are so freakin' loud it makes the windows shake."

Mandark had gotten his driver's license over the summer the minute he had turned 16, and had stopped taking the bus altogether. Instead of driving his parent's mini-van, though, he had built himself a car - a sleek, black Lamborghini that was as ostentatious as Mandark was obnoxious. On the first day of school, he had pulled up in the school parking lot looking like a celebrity straight out of a movie set, the car doors opening upward like metallic wings and snapping shut behind him as he strolled onto campus while their classmates looked on in a mixture of awe and envy. 

"Did you see when he came back?" They were approaching the bus stop now. No sign of Mandark so far. 

"Nah. Got busy," Mordecai said, his eyes back on his DS. "Trying to catch a decent fire Pokémon for the Elite 4."

"Hmm," Dexter processed this. Was it possible that Mandark had skipped town? 

But as embarrassing as his antics were yesterday, the Mandark he knew was still a textbook over-achiever who did every ounce of extra credit he could get his hands on and ALWAYS reminded the teacher about homework assignments - especially right before a long weekend. He wouldn't dare to besmirch his perfect attendance record or his chance at the Ivy Leagues just because of a failed experiment. 

The bus began to move forward, and Dexter breathed a sigh of relief that Mandark had not shown his face. Perhaps the effects of the gun had worn off overnight. He hadn't woken to a morning serenade about his "gorgeous eyes", nor were there any records of attempted break-ins according to his Computer's log. And if Mandark really were in love with him, he would've contacted him by now. 

"Why not just catch a Vulpix and train it?" Dexter asked, settling into the conversation. Mordecai's character was circling wildly in the tall grass, in search of the elusive Ninetales. 

"Are you kidding me? That's way too much of a grind."

"And how many times have you reloaded that again?"

"Shush, man," Mordecai grinned. 

Dexter relaxed as he settled on the bus and chatted with his best friend. Perhaps today would not be quite as disastrous as yesterday, after all.

A niggling feeling in the back of his mind suggested this was probably wishful thinking, but he pushed it away.


	4. Chapter 4

The bus ride was, thankfully, largely uneventful. Dexter and Mordecai debated strategies for beating the Elite Four, and for a blissful twenty minutes Dexter forgot all about Mandark. 

Mordecai was lamenting the fact that he couldn't get an Arcanine, as it was exclusive to Pokemon Red, when he was cut short by the sound of someone at the front of the bus saying, "Whoah, what _happened?_ "

The kids on the bus pressed against the glass, all craning their necks to see what was going on. Curious, Dexter and Mordecai both looked out their window trying to see what the commotion was all about.

"Oh no..." Dexter groaned.

The path from the bus stop had been lined on both sides with red and orange roses, leading up to Huber High School's steps straight to the entrance. Flower petals were raining from the sky, though from where, it was hard to tell. A few dropped in through the open windows of the bus.

"Uh, did we just enter a _shoujo_ manga or something?" Mordecai asked.

Dexter could hear the faint sound of piano music in the distance. Mandark must have hijacked the school’s sound system. For a moment he paused, listening.

It was a piece that he recognized instantly. Liszt’s Liebestraum, No. 3. Dexter had played it at his final piano recital in middle school - the last piece he had ever played before he quit music altogether. Was it coincidence that Mandark was playing it now, or had he actually remembered Dexter’s last performance?

He shook his head. Pure nonsense. Why would Mandark remember something so trivial?

As the bus pulled into the drop off point, Dexter gave a start as he saw who was waiting in the courtyard for him.

Mandark was standing on the steps to the entrance, holding a huge bouquet of roses. When Mandark spied the bus, he gave an excited wave - and though from this distance Dexter couldn't hear what he shouted, he was pretty sure that he was screaming "DEXTER!"

"Is that…Mandark?" Mordecai asked. "Why is he calling for you?”

Dexter shrunk into the back of his chair. Great. The last thing he needed was the whole school thinking he was gay with Mandark.

“Mind filling me in?” Mordecai asked as he flicked a flower petal off the screen of his DS.

"Erm," Dexter said, clearing his throat. "Mandark…may have gone a bit crazy."

"Dude, Mandark’s _always_ crazy,” Mordecai said as the bus came to a halt.

The kids ahead of them began to file out of the school bus, still marveling at the flowers raining down. Dexter and Mordecai were always the last to get off the bus, since they always sat at the very back with the unpopular kids.

As they made their way off the bus, he gave Mordecai a quick recount of the events that had transpired last night - DeeDee causing havoc in his lab, Mandark giving chase, Dexter trying to use his own weapon against him, and…  
He faltered when he got to the part where Mandark had, well… _Kissed_ him.

Mordecai looked at Dexter quizzically. “You okay, man? You look...kinda flush.”

“Fine, fine,” Dexter cleared his throat. There was no way that thinking about kissing Mandark Astronomanov, of all people, was making him blush! "…So ultimately, what we're witnessing here is a byproduct of his infatuated condition." He concluded, deciding to omit the kiss from his retelling.

"Uh-huh," Mordecai said, raising an eyebrow. There was a thoughtful look on his face, one that vaguely reminded Dexter of the way DeeDee had looked at him before. "So…why'd you shoot him in the first place?"

Dexter felt a flush rise to his cheeks. "It wasn't on purpose - I had no idea what the gun did!"

"Gotcha," Mordecai said, nodding with understanding. He looked back at the school entrance, where Mandark was waving like a maniac with his bouquet. "So this is gonna be high school now, huh?"

"Just until I figure out how to reverse the effects," Dexter said with a sigh. 

Wave after wave of students was entering the school’s double doors. Mandark was unsuccessfully attempting to maneuver through the crowd against the current. 

“Dexter!! Over here!” Mandark called. A few students were already giving him weird looks as he tried to shove past them.

“Ugh - come on, Mordecai,” Dexter said with a grimace as he made a sharp turn to go for the back entrance of the school. 

“You know we’re just gonna see him in the locker hall again, right?” Mordecai said, keeping pace with Dexter as they rounded the classrooms. At their high school, the locker halls were split by last name. The first was A through M’s, while the second was N through Z’s. 

“Probably,” Dexter said. “But for now I just need to avoid him for as long as possible-”

His words were cut short as his vision was filled with a flash of purple light accompanied with a crackling of electricity that vaguely resembled the sound of a pylon being summoned in Starcraft. 

“Dexter!!” Mandark materialized from thin air, knocking Dexter to the ground as he embraced him in a bear hug. The bouquet of flowers fell to the ground, the paper tissue wrap crinkling as it hit the grass. 

Curses. He had forgotten about Mandark’s teleportation watch. 

“Deeeeeeexy,” Mandark planted a wet kiss on Dexter’s cheek, “I missed you so much!”

“Dammit, Mandark, get off!” Dexter put a gloved hand on Mandark’s chin, shoving him back as far as possible before he could land another kiss. In his peripheral vision, he could see Mordecai looking confused and a bit stunned. “Mordecai, a little help here?” 

“Right,” Mordecai blinked, hauling Mandark off by the arm. “You really weren’t kidding about the crazy.”

Mandark glared at Mordecai. “Is there a reason why everyone seems hell-bent on keeping us apart?” 

“Chill, dude,” Mordecai let him go and put both hands up in the air, backing off. 

Dexter got up from the ground and dusted off his pants the best he could. His mother was definitely going to notice those grass stains. Wonderful.

Mandark held out the bouquet eagerly. “These are for you, love,” he said.

Dexter gave the bouquet a glare that could have made every single rosebud wilt. “You really shouldn’t be using teleportation at school, Mandark.” 

“I know, but I just couldn’t wait to see you!” Mandark said. “What do you think of this?,” he gestured at the falling flower petal storm. “I cloned over 500 different flowers last night and hacked the school intercom to play all of our piano recital music on a loop. And I made you a bento box - but that’s in your locker - I thought we could go to the roof at lunch together -”

Mordecai sniggered, but stopped when Dexter narrowed his eyes at him. 

Dexter scowled. “Leave me alone, Mandark,” he started to walk towards the lockerhall.

Mordecai walked alongside Dexter, and Mandark squeezed between them. 

“Aww, Dexy,” That pet name was already starting to get on Dexter’s nerves. “Are you upset that I didn’t come to pick you up this morning?”

“No,” Dexter replied irritably. “I’d rather be run over than ride in that death trap of a car-”

Mordecai raised a sheepish hand. “I, personally, would love a ride in the lambo if you’re offering.” Mandark rolled his eyes before turning to Dexter, all smiles. 

“Did you like my present this morning?”

“What present?”

“I sent it over with Ducky. Did you not get it?” Mandark frowned.

“I haven’t seen your stupid duck at all today, Mandark,” Dexter said as he opened the door to the locker hall.

"Oh - for the love of Einstein," Dexter sighed, looking with disdain at the remnants of his locker. It had been bedazzled beyond all recognition until it was more red than locker. The air vent had been blocked off with a gigantic laced heart with his name in big, red cursive letters. The rest of the locker was outlined with curled ribbons and bows, interspersed with red hearts and far, far too many flowers.

Mordecai wiped off some excess glitter that had made its way onto his own locker. "Dude, does it even open?"

Mandark gave a scoff. “Of course it _opens_. How else do you think his bento box fit inside?” 

Dexter grumbled, pulling on the flowers with all his might. “What in Newton’s name did you use for adhesive? Superglue?” 

Mandark leaned against the neighboring locker with a grin. “I suppose you could call it a more potent version of that, yes.”

Dexter scowled and tried to tear the flowers off of his locker anyway, but only succeeded in shredding some of the petals. 

The first passing bell for first period rang shrilly throughout the halls. All around them, people were getting into their lockers and picking up their textbooks for homeroom. After first passing bell, they had about 5 minutes to retrieve their textbooks and notebooks and get to class.

Mordecai looked up nervously. “I gotta get to class,” he said, backing up towards the direction of his homeroom. “Can’t risk another tardy. Catch ya two later.”

"Good riddance," Mandark said as Mordecai left. 

Dexter gave up on trying to remove the excessive decorations and set to opening up his locker instead. He made a mental note to himself to get the extra-strength acetone from the lab.

As he grasped his lock, he could feel Mandark watching him. “Do you mind?” Dexter grumbled, covering up the numbers with one hand as he twisted the dial with the other.

Mandark leaned against the neighboring locker, arms crossed and a smug smile on his face. “Three - Seventeen - Seventy Nine,” he recited. “Einstein’s birthday, right?”

Of course he had figured out his locker combination. Dexter made an additional mental note to obtain a new lock for tomorrow.

The walls were lined end-to-end with pink and red heart wallpaper. His periodic table magnet was nowhere to be seen and in its place was a picture of the two of them from their last Science Fair. A red heart was drawn around their faces, even though in the photo they had actually been grimacing because though they had won nationals, they had still been tied for first place. To top it off, a giant bento box tower was wedged between his AP Physics and AP Chemistry textbooks. 

“Where did you put my Calculus textbook?” Dexter said irritably.

Mandark grinned and patted his black backpack. “I thought I’d carry it for you, since we have homeroom together anyway.”

“Give it back,” Dexter held out a gloved hand. “ _Now_ , Mandark. I’m running late enough as it is.” 

But instead of relinquishing his textbook, Mandark just grabbed Dexter’s hand. “Aw, don’t be like that, Dex,” he said. “How about I just teleport us to class right now?” He began to reach for his watch, but before he could, Dexter yanked his hand back.

He backed away, eyeing the teleportation watch with a leery glance. That was a close one. “Forget it. I’ll just walk.”

“If that’s what you’d like, my dear,” Mandark smiled. Dexter scowled and slammed his locker shut. It’s not like he needed the textbook anyway, he could always borrow LeeLee’s to get the homework problems.

Mandark started walking beside him to class, his long strides effortlessly keeping up with Dexter’s hurried pace.

Dexter sighed. 

This was gonna be a long day...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so sorry for the long delays. I'm honestly having trouble with this fic since it started out so light and fluffy. I may change this it to be a little darker, but it won't be super crazy, just enough to fuel some conflict and move it forward. This will still be appropriate for general audiences by the end.


End file.
